GLENDALE, Ariz. — Like any receiver, Arizona Cardinals wideout Jaxon Shipley understands that if you cross the middle of the field to catch a pass, there’s a chance a defender will be waiting for you when the ball arrives.

So, it’s fair to reason that on a play early in Thursday’s practice, when he lined up to the right of QB Matt Barkley and ran left at the snap, he knew any catch he made could come with some complications.

Just no one would have expected those complications to come in the form of Red Bryant, a 6-foot-4, 323-pound defensive tackle who just so happened to drop into coverage that play.

“Yeah, I didn’t even know it was him,” the 6-foot, 190-pound Shipley said. “I felt I got hit, I felt it, and some guys told me it was him, and I believed it because it felt like it was him.”

The pass fell incomplete.

Shipley said he recognized the defense was coming with a blitz, which necessitated a quick, short pass. He admitted he did not see Bryant before the defensive lineman “plowed me over.”

Bryant, who is known for his ability to help stop the run but does have two career interceptions, praised the play call.

“It was a little play we have where I drop and I just caught him coming across the middle,” he said. “If I could gotten my head around faster I might have been able to intercept it.

“I’m glad I didn’t hurt him. Just tried to throw him off a little bit, make it difficult for him. And it just happened to be a good play.”